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to adopt lav.'s and local ordinances that are more stringent than the federal criteria, which are summarized here. . All development in the base floodplain is required to have a permit from the local government. Development is defined as any human-made change to the land, including new buildings, improvements to buildings, filling, grading, mining, and dredging, and storage of equipment and materials. ~ , 5 " ~ " > , " ~ ; , ~ ~ ~ h > ~ ~ ~ . Development should not be allowed in the flood way. . New residential buildings may be built in the floodplain, but they must be elevated above the base flood. Nonresidential buildings must be elevated or flood proofed to or above the BFE. . Additions, improvements, or damage repairs to buildings or structures that are valued at more than 50 percent of the value of the original building are considered substantial improvements and are treated as a ne\v building. In the early days of NFIP, most participating communities did not have comprehensive subdivision regulations. For that reason, NFlP placed primary reliance on building code standards to minimize flood damages, with some general performance standards for subdivision proposals, including the follovving. . All subdivisions proposals must be reviewed to determine if they will be "reasonably safe" from flooding. . All ne\v subdivision proposals greater than 50 lots or five acres must identify the BFE on the site plan. The applicant must develop a BFE if one is not already available. . Public utilities and facilities, such as sewer, gas, electricat and water systems, must be located and constructed to minimize or eliminate flood damage. 8 . Adequate drainage is required to reduce exposure to flood hazards. . Tn addition, the subdivision review process must be used to ensure that the floodway is kept free of encroachments. Taken together, these criteria encourage communities to address the flooding hazards at the NFlP minimum retluirements strictly limit encroachments into the floodzeay to keep homes safe from flooding and to limit increases in upstream flood elevations and damages to upstream property oumers. Floodways also usually irlclude the areas of the floodplain that are subject to the deepest and highest velocity flooding. In this example, fill has beel! placed in the floodway to create a homesite. Such actions reduce the floodwater storage capacity of the floodplain. In some circumstances, this can iHcrease downstream flooding. earliest stages of subdivision planning rather than when individual structures are being constructed. If a community can work with the developer and others to subdivide land in the manner that least intrudes on the floodplain, many long-term floodplain management benefits can be achieved. LEGAL ISSUES FOR SUBDIVISION AND FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS A comprehensive plan serves as a blueprint to guide community grmvth and development. Like the zoning ordinance, a community's subdivision ordinance is a means of implementing the policies of the comprehensive plan. Proposals for subdivision development can be denied on the basis that they are not in accordance with the policies of the community's comprehensive plan. The constitutionality of subdivision regulations is based on the right of the community to direct growth and development. To that end, subdivision regulations establish standards which ensure that the development \-\Till reflect sound planning and \-vill not be detrimental to the community (Freilich 1995). There is firm support from the courts for local government efforts to control floodplain development. Measures used by local governments to steer development into less flood-susceptible areas and to prevent ne",.: development from increasing the flood susceptibility of other properties have also been supported by the courts. (Federal Interagency Floodplain Management Task Force 1992, Ch. 10).